Manufacturing in New York State grew for a 2nd month in July but at a slower pace, as new orders and shipments both dipped.

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York said Monday that its Empire State manufacturing index dropped to 9.8 from 19.8 in June.

Any reading above Zero signals expansion.

July’s fall comes after the index reached a 2-year high in June, the reading is still at a mostly healthy mark. While the index measures sentiment among New York firms, it is closely followed by economists because it provides an early read on factory output nationwide.

A measure of new orders dropped to 13.3 from 18.1, while a gauge of shipments dropped to 10.5 from 22.3. Hiring slowed sharply too. Manufacturers in the state are optimistic about business conditions over the next 6 months, but that optimism fell some this month.

US factories have been mostly expanding since the fall, though at a modest pace with only limited hiring.

Nationwide, manufacturing output climbed 0.2% in June, after falling in May. Plus a private survey earlier this month found that factory activity in June reached a nearly 3-year high.

Still, manufacturing firms added just 8,000 jobs in Q-2.

Monday, the US major stock market indexes finished at: DJIA-8.02 at 21629.72, NAS Comp+1.97 at 6314.40, S&P 500-0.13 at 2459.15

Paul Ebeling

Paul A. Ebeling, polymath, excels in diverse fields of knowledge. Pattern Recognition Analyst in Equities, Commodities and Foreign Exchange and author of “The Red Roadmaster’s Technical Report” on the US Major Market Indices™, a highly regarded, weekly financial market letter, he is also a philosopher, issuing insights on a wide range of subjects to a following of over 250,000 cohorts. An international audience of opinion makers, business leaders, and global organizations recognizes Ebeling as an expert.